Last-minute rebound lifts S&P 500, Dow edge to new highs

Trader Joseph Lawler, center, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Technology companies and banks are leading U.S. stocks slightly lower in early trading on Wall Street. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

The Standard & Poor's 500 index and Dow Jones industrial average closed higher for the fifth straight day, each posting new highs. The other indexes finished slightly lower as investors continued to pore through the latest batch of company earnings.

Technology companies weighed on the market all day, but gains in health care stocks helped offset some of those losses.

"You have a lot of risk assets, especially equities, having done pretty well," said Sameer Samana, global quantitative strategist for Wells Fargo Investment Institute. "Some people are viewing now as a pretty good time to make sure they lock in some of that performance."

The S&P 500 index rose 0.84 points, or 0.03 percent, to 2,562.10. The Dow added 5.44 points, or 0.02 percent, to 23,163.04. The Nasdaq composite slid 19.15 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,605.07. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks gave up 3.10 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,502.04.

Slightly more stocks rose than declined on the New York Stock Exchange.

Investors bid up shares in drug manufacturers and other health care companies.

Envision Healthcare led the sector, vaulting $4.43, or 10.9 percent, to $45.08. Gilead Sciences rose $1.58, or 2 percent, to $81.59. A subsidiary of the drugmaker received approval this week to sell a new treatment for a form of blood cancer.

Verizon Communications' latest quarterly results also impressed traders. The company said its wireless unit gained more mobile phone users than expected in its latest quarter. Its stock rose 56 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $49.21.

Adobe Systems surged 12.2 percent after the software maker issued a strong profit forecast for 2018. The stock was the biggest riser in S&P 500, climbing $18.73 to $171.73.

Other technology stocks didn't fare as well.

Apple had its worst day in two months amid investor concern that its recently launched iPhone 8 models are lagging in market share compared to prior iPhone models. The stock finished down $3.78, or 2.4 percent, at $155.98. Despite the slide, Apple is still up 34.7 percent this year.

The slide in Apple and other technology companies weighed on the market for much of the day. The sector, which is leading all other sectors in the S&P 500 with a gain of 30 percent this year, recovered some of its losses by late afternoon.

"The sector has had such a great run, but you're starting to see some concerns about how big they've gotten, some chatter in Washington about should there be some regulations," said Samana. "People are just content to take some money off the table."

While many more companies will be reporting third-quarter results in coming weeks, so far earnings have been largely positive. Some 75 S&P 500 companies have reported quarterly results so far, posting sales growth of about 6 percent and earnings gains of about 9 percent, Samana said.

Even so, quarterly report cards and outlooks from several companies failed to impress investors Thursday.

United Continental sank 12.1 percent after the parent of United Airlines said that weak prices will continue the rest of this year. The stock was the biggest decliner in the S&P 500, tumbling $8.21 to $59.78.

Auto parts retailer Genuine Parts slumped 8.5 percent after the company said costs rose and its quarterly profit fell short of Wall Street's estimates. The stock lost $8.33 to $89.71.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.31 percent from 2.35 percent late Wednesday.

Benchmark U.S. crude lost 75 cents, or 1.4 percent, to settle at $51.29 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price international oils, fell 92 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $57.23 per barrel in London.

The slide in oil weighed on energy stocks. Schlumberger declined $1.41, or 2.1 percent, to $64.50.

The Associated Press is an American multinational nonprofit news agency headquartered in New York City. The AP is owned by its contributing newspapers, radio, and television stations in the United States, all of which contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists.

Some college and university officials are having talks with student-athletes and consulting each other amid concerns that demonstrations over racial injustice like the ones roiling pro sports will spread to college athletics

Asian shares are pushing higher as investors stayed optimistic about global conditions while awaiting the outcome of political events in China and Japan and speculated over Trump's choice of next Fed chief

Senators are moving to boost transparency for online political ads, unveiling on Thursday what could be the first of several pieces of legislation to try to lessen influence from Russia or other foreign actors on U.S. elections

European Union leaders have told British Prime Minister Theresa May to match her goodwill pledges to boost Brexit negotiations with concrete proposals if she wants to start discussing a future trade deal by December

Some college and university officials are having talks with student-athletes and consulting each other amid concerns that demonstrations over racial injustice like the ones roiling pro sports will spread to college athletics